Retainer

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a retainer for pallet racks and the like. In particular, this invention relates to a retainer that is easily and quickly attached to the pallet rack and which is used as a safety barrier to prevent pallets from being pushed off the pallet rack and to assist in locating pallets on the rack at the correct depth. A pallet retainer of the present invention includes at least a plurality of spacer members and at least one upright member, wherein each spacer member includes an opening through which the upright member passes and wherein the spacer member positions the vertical member to substantially prevent a pallet being placed to deeply within a pallet bay.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention generally relates to a retainer for pallet racks and thelike. In particular, this invention relates to a retainer that is easilyand quickly attached to the pallet rack and which is used as a safetybarrier to prevent pallets from being pushed off the pallet rack and toassist in locating pallets on the rack at the correct depth.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Pallet racks provide a vital storage support structure in largewarehousing, storage and distribution facilities. In such facilities,forklifts or other vehicles are commonly employed to load or removepallets from the pallet racks. Large retailing operations have alsorecently employed pallet racks to both store and display products in theretail showrooms. As the size of the facilities and the direct access ofthe public to pallet racks systems have increased, the potential fordamage and/or injury due to accidental dropping or improper loading ofthe pallet racks has also increased.

Various safety systems have been contemplated and used to enhance thesafety and minimize safety risks from mishandling or misloading ofpallet racks, for example, retractable safety net systems which aremounted on pallet racks to prevent accidental dropping. Other forms ofapparatus for selectively holding, retaining, supporting, and/orsecuring objects upon one or more shelves, and prevent such objects frominadvertently falling have also been used. Certain types of apparatusemploy a retractable, flexible, elastic barrier, which permitsobservation and inspection of objects contained within an interiorcompartment or enclosure on the shelf. The barrier can be stretched andpulled aside to allow access to the compartment or enclosure, which whenreleased, retracts back to an original position to function as a barrierthat retains objects within the compartment or enclosure to prevent theinadvertent escape of such objects contained therein. Further systemsinvolve the use of mesh or horizontal bars attached to the rear of thepallet rack to prevent pallets being pushed out through the back of thepallet rack. However, it is possible for a pallet to inadvertently beplaced on top of a horizontal bar and therefore be incorrectly storedand also thereby reduce available space for additional pallets to bestored. In yet a further attempt to provide a system for preventingpallets from falling from racks, a system of lateral load beams andbrackets has been used. The additional load beams and associatedbrackets is a complex system that requires significant disruption towarehouse operation, if it is to be retro-fitted to an existing palletrack structure.

Unfortunately, all of the above-mentioned safety systems have drawbacks,from cost to complexity. The present invention seeks to address theproblems and drawbacks of previous retainer systems by providing asimple yet effective solution to effectively retain pallets in racks.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a pallet retainer comprising at least aplurality of spacer members and at least one upright member, whereineach spacer member includes an opening through which the upright memberpasses and wherein the spacer member positions the vertical member toprevent a pallet being placed to deeply within a bay.

In certain embodiments of the present invention at least one of thespacer members is engageable with a rear load beam of a pallet rack. Insome embodiments of the present invention at least one of the spacermembers is substantially fixed to a rear load beam of a pallet rack.Preferably, the upright member is positioned in a substantially verticalorientation behind the pallet rack.

In certain embodiments of the present invention, the spacer member isconstructed of steel or plastic. In some embodiments of the presentinvention, the upright member is constructed of steel.

The present invention also provides a pallet rack comprising a palletretainer according to the present invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 shows the basic structure of a standard pallet rack.

FIG. 2 shows typical arrangements of pallet racks in a warehouse,against a wall (A) or in a double entry arrangement (B).

FIG. 3 shows detail of the rear of a pallet and its interaction with therear load beam.

FIG. 4 shows an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, inperspective view as attached to the rear load beam (sketch, A), and planview (B) and side view (C) of a spacer member. Panel D shows a typicalinstallation of this embodiment of the present invention, from the rearof the pallet rack.

FIG. 5 shows three alternative embodiments of a spacer member of thepresent invention (A, B and C, D, E and F, G), in plan view (A, C andG), side view (B, D and F), and end-on (E).

FIG. 6 shows further alternative spacer members suitable for use inembodiments of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates broadly to a retainer for pallet racks asused, for example, in warehouses.

Referring to all the drawings wherein like reference numerals designatelike or corresponding parts throughout the several views, the followingdescription refers to the specific, illustrated embodiments of thepresent invention and is in no way intended to limit the scope of thepresent invention to the specific, illustrated embodiments.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, a typical pallet rack generally has three maincomponents: posts 10, connectors 20 and load beams 30,31; wherein twoadjacent posts 10 are generally joined by a plurality of horizontal anddiagonal braces 15 to form a frame end 40. Two frame ends 40 may bejoined by load beams 30,31 to form a frame. A bay is the area into whichpallets are placed and are defined by load beams 30,31 (upon which thepallet is placed) and two frame ends 40. In normal use, a pallet restson a rear load beam 30 and a front load beam 31. Another importantfeature of a pallet rack is the connector 20 between the load beams30,31 and the posts 10 to which they are attached. The weight of a loadplaced on the beams 30,31 is transferred through the connector 20 to theposts 10. The posts 10 thus ultimately carry the total weight within therack.

Pallet racks are generally free standing but with structures positionedbehind them. Such structures include walls or fencing 60 (FIG. 2A) orother pallet racks (FIG. 2B). Arrows in FIG. 2 illustrate the directionof entry of pallets into racks arranged in such manners. Pallets areplaced in bays by a forklift driver, generally from an obscuredposition, often resulting in the pallet being placed too deeply withinthe bay or with incorrect alignment such that the pallet does not sitproperly or securely upon the load beams. Such situations may result indamage to the product, stock, neighbouring pallets, walls or fencing inthe vicinity of the pallet.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, the pallet 85 often includes a portion 80 forinteracting with, usually, the rear load beam 30 to securely locate thepallet in the bay.

The present invention provides a pallet retainer comprising at least aplurality of spacer members and an upright member, wherein each spacermember includes an opening through which the upright member passes andwherein the spacer member positions the vertical member to prevent apallet being placed to deeply within a bay. In certain forms of theinvention each of the spacer members is engagable with a rear load beamof a pallet rack to position the upright member a predetermined distancebehind the pallet rack.

FIG. 4 illustrates an embodiment of a pallet retainer according to thepresent invention; wherein the pallet retainer comprises a spacer member100 and an upright member 110, wherein the spacer member 100 includes anopening 105 through which the upright member 110 passes. In theillustrated embodiment, the spacer member 100 includes an engagementportion 108 which is adapted to engage with a rear load beam 30 of apallet rack. FIG. 4A shows an “in use” arrangement of this embodiment ofthe invention, wherein the engagement portion 108 engages with the rearload beam 30 of a pallet rack. The engagement portion 108 may be of anysuitable shape to permit engagement of the spacer member 100 with therear load beam 30, such that, in use, if force is applied to the uprightmember 110 by a pallet being pushed up against it, that force isdistributed to the rear load beam 30 via the spacer member 100 to whichit is attached. In use, a plurality of spacer members 100 would be used,in particular, there would be at least one additional spacer member 100positioned on a rear load beam 30 above and/or below the rear load beamillustrated in FIG. 4A. This arrangement allows the upright member 110to be positioned firmly so that there would be minimal movement of theupright member 110 when a pallet is pushed against it. Exemplaryarrangements of engagement portions 108 are illustrated in FIGS. 4, 5and 6. However, alternative arrangements are envisaged, for example asillustrated in FIG. 6C and discussed further below, the spacer member100 could include means by which it could be fixed directly to the rearload beam 30 by any method known in the art, including but not limitedto: bolting, screwing and/or welding.

The purpose of the spacer member 100 is to space the upright member 110away from the rear of the pallet rack. The spacer member 100 includes anopening 105 through which the upright member 110 passes. The position ofthe opening 105 is such that when a pallet is in a bay, but not pushedtoo far into the bay, the upright member 110 does not contact thepallet. FIG. 4 shows illustrations of an exemplary spacer member 100 andthe distance marked “a” provides a gap between the rear of the rear loadbeam 30 and the upright member 110 such that the pallet can be correctlypositioned within the bay without contacting the upright member 110. Incertain embodiments of the present invention the dimension “a” will bein the order of 10 to 100 mm greater than the overhang 80 of the pallet85. In specific embodiments, the dimension “a” will be in the order of10 to 50 mm, or 10 to 25 mm, or 13 mm greater than the overhang 80 ofthe pallet 85. If the pallet 85 is placed too far into the bay, it willcontact the upright member 110 instead of damaging other product, stock,neighbouring pallets, walls or fencing located behind the pallet rack.

Referring to the embodiment of the engagement portion 108 as illustratedin the various Figures, dimension “b” will be approximately the heightof the rear load beam 30. In typical pallet racks the dimension “b” willbe in the range of about 50 to 150 mm. Dimension “c” will beapproximately the width of the rear load beam 30. In typical palletracks, the dimension “c” will be in the range of about 30 to 60 mm.Dimensions “b” and “c” are chosen to provide a close fit of region 108to the rear load beam 30, so that the spacer member 100 will not readilyfall off the rear load beam. The dimension “d” may be any suitable size,such as, but not limited to: 50 to 300 mm, or 50 to 200 mm, or 70 to 150mm, or 80 to 120 mm.

As illustrated in FIG. 2B, rows of pallet racks may be placedback-to-back (double entry rack) such that when a pallet is put into abay from a first side, it may come into contact with a pallet in the baylocated therebehind. This can result in pallets resting on or againsteach other which could have detrimental effects, such as reducing thenumber of pallets that can be stored, making pallets difficult to accessand/or remove, or damaging the pallets and/or their contents. In atypical arrangement, the distance between racks in a double entry rackarrangement is approximately 380 mm. In such situations, it is desirableto have a pallet retainer according to the present invention locatedbetween the adjacent pallet racks. This may be achieved by having aspacer member that spans the distance between the rear load beams ofadjacent pallet racks. Illustrated in FIGS. 5A to 5E are embodiments ofspacer members that may be used in such a situation. The dimension “e”will typically be the distance between the racks plus twice the width ofthe rear load beams, so that a close fit is achieved. The opening 105 insuch spacer members would typically be substantially centrally locatedacross the width of the spacer member as illustrated. The embodimentillustrated in FIGS. 5C to 5E also includes a rib portion 109 to addstrength to the section of spacer member 100 that spans the gap betweenadjacent pallet racks.

In circumstances where double entry racks are not a standard distanceapart, it may be desirable to have individual spacer members (see FIGS.5F and G) that overlap such that an upright member may pass throughaligned openings. In order to allow for some degree of overlap betweenthe spacer members, the opening 105 may be slightly elongated, such asillustrated in FIG. 5G.

It is envisaged that the spacer members 100 will be constructed of astrong material able to withstand the considerable forces that may beapplied when a heavy pallet is pushed hard against the upright member110, such as, but not limited to: steel, aluminium or plastic.Preferably, the spacer member is constructed of steel.

The upright member 110 passes through the opening 105 in the spacermember 100. The upright member 110 may be any sufficiently strongelongate member, such as, but not limited to a pipe. In suchembodiments, the upright member 110 may have a substantially circularcross-section. The opening 105 in the spacer member 100 should provide aclose fit to the upright member 110 in order to provide efficienttransfer of force to the rear load beam 30, as discussed above. Alsoencompassed by the present invention are upright members 110 beingnon-circular in cross-section, for example, being of substantiallysquare cross-section. In certain embodiments of the present invention,the upright member 110 is a pipe having a circular cross-section of 25to 100 mm, or 30 to 75 mm, or of approximately 50 mm in diameter. Thelength of the upright member 110 will depend upon the specificapplication. It will need to be approximately as high as the pallet rackif all bays are to be protected. Installation of such upright member 110may be difficult, therefore it is envisaged that in certaincircumstances it is desirable for the upright member 110 to be comprisedof more than one length of material. When more than one length ofmaterial is used, they may be joined by a joining piece thatsubstantially maintains the strength of the upright member 110. Theskilled addressee would realise that it is most preferred to keep theupright member 110 as a single piece of material; however, if it is tobe composed of multiple pieces, then it should be kept to as fewseparate pieces as possible to maintain its strength and to potentiallyreduce manufacturing costs.

In order to accommodate the upright member 110, the opening 105 may beof similar shape to the cross-section of the upright member 110. In theillustrated embodiments, the opening 105 is substantially circular. Theopening 105 may be slightly larger than the cross-section of the uprightmember 110, for example approximately 2 to 5 mm larger in diameter inthe case of a circular opening. The slightly larger size may facilitateassembly of the pallet retainer.

As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, pallet racks 1 are usually arrangedsuch that pallet bays are arranged one on top of the other, in forexample, “columns”. Therefore, it is envisaged that a pallet retaineraccording to the present invention will also be arranged substantiallyvertically. In particular, the upright member 110 will generally bepositioned in a substantially vertical orientation to provide a barrierbehind the pallet rack 1 to prevent a pallet being pushed too far into abay. Furthermore, in certain embodiments of the present invention, theremay be more than one pallet retainer for each column of pallet bays.While the lower end of the upright member 110 may rest against thefloor, it may also be held in a substantially fixed location by the useof standard hardware, such as, but not limited to, a fencing flange andappropriate floor fixings. Alternatively, a floor flange 120 may beemployed, wherein the floor flange 120 is similar to a fencing flangebut having a higher return portion to more securely accommodate theupright member 110.

The embodiments of the present invention described herein are intendedto provide an understanding of the invention but are not intended tolimit it in any way. For example, it is within the scope of the presentinvention to use more than one retainer behind each pallet rack. Inaddition, FIG. 6A illustrates an alternative shape for the spacer member100 that may find application in certain situations by providing alarger area of the rear load beam 30 over which any forces are to bedistributed. The embodiment illustrated in FIG. 6B is similar to thatillustrated in FIG. 3, except that a cut out region 107 is provided tofacilitate assembly of the pallet retainer. In particular, the uprightmember 110 could be installed without the need to provide the uprightmember 110 in multiple pieces. The embodiment illustrated in FIG. 6C issimilar to that illustrated in FIG. 6B, except that the spacer member100 is intended to be permanently affixed to the rear load beam 30, forexample by welding. Such spacer members could readily be incorporatedinto the rear load beam 30 during manufacture of the rear load beam 30.The illustrated embodiment also includes a cut out region 107 that wouldfacilitate assembly of the pallet retainer in a similar manner to thatdescribed above.

In yet a further embodiment, the spacer member 100 may include a furtheropening to allow the spacer member 100 to be fixed to rear load beam 30.Such additional openings may be provided in combination with, or as analternative to, the rear load beam engaging region 108. Suitablefasteners for such fixing include, but are not limited to, bolts, screwsand rivets.

The present invention also provides a pallet rack comprising a palletretainer according to the present invention. In certain embodiments, theretainer may be retro-fitted to an existing pallet rack. In otherembodiments, the spacer members 100 may be supplied already attached torear load beams 30 for use in the assembly of a pallet rack. Once such apallet rack has been assembled, an upright member 110 may be added tocomplete the pallet rack comprising a pallet retainer. As discussedabove, in certain embodiments of the present invention, more than onepallet retainer may be used per bay of a pallet rack. For example, twoor more pallet retainers may be used per bay.

The upright member of the pallet retainer of the present invention mayalso provide a mounting for various additional components, such as, butnot limited to: (i) a barrier in order to create a dividing wall or asecure area; (ii) netting or mesh to form a barrier to prevent stockfrom falling from the rear of a pallet; and (iii) fire sprinklerservices.

Where the terms “comprise”, “comprises”, “comprised” or “comprising” areused in this specification, they are to be interpreted as specifying thepresence of the stated features, integers, steps or components referredto, but not to preclude the presence or addition of one or more otherfeature, integer, step, component or group thereof.

Further, any prior art reference or statement provided in thespecification is not to be taken as an admission that such artconstitutes, or is to be understood as constituting, part of the commongeneral knowledge.

1. A pallet retainer comprising a plurality of spacer members and anupright member, wherein each spacer member includes an opening throughwhich the upright member passes, and wherein the spacer member positionsthe upright member to prevent a pallet being placed too deeply within apallet bay.
 2. A pallet retainer according to claim 1, wherein each ofthe spacer members is engageable with a rear load beam of a pallet rack.3. A pallet retainer according to claim 1, wherein at least one of thespacer members is substantially fixed to a rear load beam of a palletrack.
 4. A pallet retainer according to claim 1, wherein the uprightmember is positioned in a substantially vertical orientation.
 5. Apallet retainer according to claim 1, wherein the spacer member isconstructed of steel.
 6. A pallet retainer according to claim 1, whereinthe spacer member is constructed of plastic.
 7. A pallet retaineraccording to claim 1, wherein the upright member is constructed ofsteel.
 8. A pallet rack comprising a pallet retainer according to claim1.